BUSTED BY ASCAP

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by KevWind

It's a good question .
I am not a lawyer but do have a lot of hours researching Copyright law.

Unfortunately copyright law is fairly complex and often misunderstood. And while the exact wording used in laws is usually the basis for enforcement. Often there are varying interpretations of the specific language used and why lawyers make the big money .

For example the basic copyright law grants the holder of the copyright exclusive right to perform the work in public ( the subject of this thread) or sanction performance in number of different ways ( the one being discussed here is through licensing fees ) And whether or not profit is made from the performance (per se) does not matter, There however are some qualified exceptions for non profit organizations like for education etc.

But in answer to your specific question There are some exceptions but technically a "private party" is not one of them again (per se). If the party is
not for profit and on private property and that property is not normally open to the public or not normally rented out for profit , like your home or yard etc. then there is no legal recourse because the statute stats "public performance".
But as others have noted If by "my buddies and I get a room" you are inferring a for profit rental space then there could be legal recourse ( not that a PRO would bother with it which is a different subject)

Thanks Kev! As you hint I'm sure there's a good deal of "not something anyone" (such as the PROs) is working hard on enforcing" element here. Other than my usual wild curiosity the only reason I brought it up is that I was one of the folks who suggested that if the OP and his friends wanted to have a song pull without PROs they could just get together and have one in a non-public place. They probably still could, though I wouldn't send a note to all the PROs with a "you can't get me now!" claim.

[Brent Hahn]

I've played at a few places where they ask open mic performers to kick in a buck to cover the PRO license. I've also had quite a few of my ASCAP songs performed by other people in bars and clubs and coffeehouses and on radio stations that also pay the PROs. Have I seen a dime from any of that? Nope.

[H165]

Are you serious? You are paying to provide no-charge entertainment for the venue? Pay-to-play for an open mic?

Not exactly. We do pay to play, and would likely not balk at paying more. This venue may be somewhat different than others:

It is closed to the buying public and makes no profit while we are there.

It is owned by a local (widely published - Grammy winner) songwriter and performer. For this reason it is sometimes attended by unexpected players.
The rules are followed and the fees are paid.

It is a place to be seen and heard more than a place of entertainment

Comptetition to play there is strong - we have to arrive way early to get a time slot to perform.

Performers are there mostly because it's a fun thing to do, not because the venue is seeking performers who will "entertain" and help sell stuff.

In the big picture, we all probably look at it as a local musicians community gathering rather than a traditional open mic. It makes us smile.

[MikeBmusic]

Originally Posted by Brent Hahn

I've played at a few places where they ask open mic performers to kick in a buck to cover the PRO license. I've also had quite a few of my ASCAP songs performed by other people in bars and clubs and coffeehouses and on radio stations that also pay the PROs. Have I seen a dime from any of that? Nope.

Do you play your own (registered) songs and report them on the ASCAP database? Until you do, your registered songs fall 'under the radar'.
ASCAP may not be as generous as BMI (my PRO), but I know people (who perform and report their own songs) with ASCAP who do get payments.

[merlin666]

Similar rules apply in Canada. We have a local farmers market and I asked about busking rules, and in their policies I found the following:

• Busking musicians may only perform their own original music. The RFM does not hold a SOCAN license, and as such the performance of music copyrighted by other musicians is not permitted.
• Busking musicians are permitted to sell CDs of their music. Selling other products or services is not permitted.

It seems that not all venues are as organized in informing their potential performers about the rules from the outset.

[DesertTwang]

Perhaps I'm missing something, but why would the players pay that fee? It's the venue's responsibility. After all, the players' circle brings revenue, doesn't it? If the point of the circle is to perform for an audience, the venue should pay. If the circle just wants to have a place to toss tunes back and forth and doesn't care about an audience, I'd simply meet at someone's house instead and avoid the issue altogether.

EDIT: Just read the latest post from the OP about there being no paying audience. That said, if the venue is owned by a Grammy-winning, widely published artist, certainly he can come up with $350 bucks a year, one would think...

[Mr. Jelly]

I stole all the tunes I play so I consider them mine